When you get a cut on your skin, there’s a chance that the wound can become infected if you don’t keep it clean. Similarly, if your tooth is ‘wounded’, like from tooth decay or if a crack develops, it too can be infected.

If a cut on your skin gets infected, it affects the soft tissue around the cut. In your teeth, the soft tissue, called the pulp, lies deep within each tooth. When bacteria get into your tooth through a crack or a cavity, it can infect and/or inflame the pulp.

Left untreated, the infection and inflammation of the pulp can cause severe pain, an abscess and might mean the tooth must be removed.

If your tooth is threatened by a crack or decay, or if inflammation is detected, your dentist might recommend a root canal treatment to help prevent a full infection.

Root canal treatments remove the pulp of your tooth so there’s little or no chance of future infection. To learn more, ask your dentist or hygienist to about roots canals the next time you visit us here at My Dental Care in Lindsay, Ontario.